EEOC on Infertility

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT

Elizabeth Grossman

(917) 509-8314

NEW YORK --- Judge Joanna Seybert has approved the entry of a Consent Decree providing that a Long Island employer will pay $135,000 to a former employee for damages she suffered when they terminated her rather than allowing her to continue infertility treatments.

The United States Equal Employment Opportunity Commission filed a lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York agains the East Northport Residential Health Care Facility Inc. doing business as Huntington Hills Center for Health and Rehabilitation, a facility in Melville that provides specialized residential health care services. The EEOC complaint alleged that Huntington Hills discriminated against its employees by terminating an employee rather than accommodate her need to have three days off to complete infertility treatments, in violation of Title I of the Americans with Disabilities Act, the ADA. Subsequently, the parties filed the Consent Decree in which Huntington Hills, while not assuming liability for improper or illegal actions, agreed to compensate the employee $135,000 for back pay and compensatory damages. The Consent Decree also provides that Huntington Hills will provide training to all its management and staff regarding their obligations and rights under the ADA and will take appropriate corrective actions in administering its employee policies.

The EEOC enforces Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1961, as amended, which prohibits employment discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex or national origin; the Age Discrimination in Employment Act; the Equal Pay Act; prohibitions against discrimination affecting individuals with disabilities in the federal sector; sections of the Civil Rights Act of 1991; and Title I of the Americans with Disabilities Act, which prohibits discrimination against people with disabilities in the private sector and state and local governments.